A/N: Not all the dialogue belongs to me. Some of it is directly quoted from the Deathly Hallows book.
-O-O-O-
The body slams into the table. Shocked, I lose my balance and fall out of my chair onto the cold wooden floor.
Lucius looks down at me, concern glinting in his eyes.
I stare into my own lap, trying not to throw up. I can already feel it rising in my throat. I jerk my head back slightly and then vomit onto my pants.
Not very many Death Eaters are paying attention, but the ones who do turn to look, sneer in amusement, except for my parents, who look more and more anxious by the moment.
"What's wrong, Draco?" I hear the Dark Lord speak in a calm, slithery voice. "Why don't you get back in your chair now?"
My eyes are wide with terror, and my clothes are soaking with sweat - and vomit. I carefully get to my feet and sit back down in the chair, not making eye-contact with anyone.
Voldemort's snake, Nagini, is on the table eating the body of the woman who was just killed. I look away quickly so I don't throw up again.
"Thorfinn," Voldemort speaks coldly. "You have failed to capture the boy. You and Dolohov will now be severely punished." He hits Thorfinn Rowle with a curse that knocks him backwards onto the floor, then he does the same to Dolohov. "I'll have you both suffer the cruciatus curse."
Voldemort suddenly looks at me with malice gleaming in his eyes. "Draco," he says in his cold, slithery voice. "Give Rowle another taste of our displeasure…. Do it, or feel my wrath yourself!"
I jump back, terrified at what I just heard and am being instructed to do. I don't know what to do. He wants me to torture someone? The cruciatus curse? I've attempted to use it once before - on my Hogwarts enemy, Harry Potter. I don't feel as much hatred toward him now, being more involved in the darkness and knowing that my own enemy could very well be my only hope of being saved from this suffering.
Voldemort has just instructed me to torture Rowle, another Death Eater. I have to do it, or Voldemort will do horrible things to me and my family. I can't let that happen! I have to protect myself. I have to protect my parents! I will use the curse on Rowle. This time, I'll be successful.
"Crucio!" I scream. Rowle thrashes around in anguish. I flinch at my own actions, but I can't stop. I have to protect those I care about - and I don't care about Rowle - he's a murderer and torturer himself.
I walk downstairs into the drawing room and open a drawer. There it is. I reach for the knife. I take it over to the table. Should I really do this? I look at the black mark on my arm. I don't want it! It's caused me so much pain! If I could just get rid of it - I start digging the edge of the blade into my skin around the Dark Mark. Blood seeps out as pain cuts through me. I can't do this! It's too much! I drop the knife onto the table, blood dripping from the end of it. I look at my blood-stained arm, the Dark Mark still there. I feel like it's mocking me - "You can't get rid of me without hurting yourself, and you don't have the guts to do that!" I can see it evilly glaring at me.
I fight the urge to scream at it. Fighting it won't help. It's a mark, and it isn't going away. Even if I could get rid of it, that wouldn't save me. I walk upstairs into my room, fall onto my bed, and cry into my pillow.
My mother walks into the room, behind her I can make out the figures of Fenrir Greyback - that terrifyingly disgusting werewolf - and some other people he must be working with. They've forced in prisoners who are very… familiar looking.
"What is this?" My father asks.
"They say they've got Potter," Narcissa says. "Draco, come here."
I start getting out of my chair and advance toward the one who's supposedly Potter.
"Well, boy?" rasps the werewolf. I shudder at his voice. This is uncomfortable.
"Well, Draco?" Lucius looks at me. "Is it? Is it Harry Potter?"
"I can't - I can't be sure," I say, sliding uncomfortably away from Greyback. I don't really want to look at the one who's supposed to be Harry. From what I can tell, he does seem a lot like Harry… but I don't like the position I'm in right now.
"But look at him carefully, look!" Lucius exclaims, excitement rising in his voice. "Come closer!" I step forward.
"Draco, if we are the ones who hand Potter over to the Dark Lord, everything will be forgiv-"
"Now, we won't be forgetting who actually caught him, I hope, Mr. Malfoy?" said Greyback menacingly. My skin burns at how this disgusting werewolf talks to my father.
"Of course not, of course not!" Lucius responds quickly and walks closer to the Harry-looking person. "What did you do to him?" He looks at Greyback. "How did he get into this state?"
"That wasn't us."
"Looks more like a Stinging Jinx to me," says Lucius. "There's something there. It could be the scar, stretched tight…. Draco, come here, look properly! What do you think?"
I feel sick to my stomach. "I don't know," I say quickly. I can tell now that he's definitely Harry, especially since the two people beside him are obviously Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. But I can't give him away - something's stopping me - maybe it's the fact that I want Harry to destroy Voldemort - to save me and my family from our suffering. I also don't want to make it too obvious I'm lying, because then I might get tortured, and I don't want to put my parents in danger, either.
I walk toward the fireplace where my mother is standing. "We had better be certain, Lucius," Narcissa calls. "Completely sure that it is Potter, before we summon the Dark Lord…. They say this is his" - she looks closely at a wand - "but it does not resemble Ollivander's description…. If we are mistaken, if we call the Dark Lord here for nothing…. Remember what he did to Rowle and Dolohov?"
What I did to Rowle….
"What about the Mudblood, then?" growls Greyback. He forces the prisoners to swivel around so that the light falls on Granger.
"Wait," says Narcissa.
Oh no….
"Yes - yes, she was in Madam Malkin's with Potter! I saw her picture in the Prophet! Look, Draco, isn't it the Granger girl?"
There's no way out of this…. "I… maybe… yeah."
"But then, that's the Weasley boy!" shouts Lucius, walking over to Ron Weasley. "It's them, Potter's friends - Draco, look at him, isn't it Arthur Weasley's son, what's his name?"
"Yeah," I say, not looking at them. "It could be."
The door opens, and my Aunt Bellatrix walks in. This is going to be… something.
"What is this? What's happened, Cissy?" She walks around the prisoners and looks at Granger. "But surely, this is the Mudblood girl? This is Granger?"
"Yes, yes, it's Granger!" Lucius cries. "And beside her, we think, Potter! Potter and his friends, caught at last!"
"Potter?" Bellatrix shrieks and backs away to take in Potter better. "Are you sure? Well then, the Dark Lord must be informed at once!" she drags back her left sleeve, exposing her Dark Mark. She's about to touch it to summon Voldemort, but Lucius grabs her arm, stopping her from touching her Mark.
"I was about to call him!" Lucius says. "I shall summon him, Bella, Potter has been brought to my house, and it is therefore upon my authority-"
"Your authority!" Bellatrix sneers, trying to wrench her hand from his grasp. "You lost your authority when you lost your wand, Lucius! How dare you! Take your hands off me!" I'm upset at the cold way she speaks to my father. He shouldn't be treated this way!
"This is nothing to do with you, you did not capture the boy-"
"Begging your pardon, Mr. Malfoy," Greyback interrupts, "but it's us that caught Potter, and it's us that'll be claiming the gold-"
"Gold!" Bellatrix laughs, still trying to throw off my father, while reaching into her pocket with her other hand for her wand. "Take your gold, filthy scavenger, what do I want with gold? I seek only the honor of his-of-" she breaks off and fixes her eyes on a shimmering gold sword. Lucius throws her hand away from him and rips up his own sleeve. "STOP!" shrieks Bellatrix. "Do not touch it, we shall all perish if the Dark Lord comes now!"
Lucius freezes, his index finger hovering over his Mark. Bellatrix walks over to the guy with the sword.
"What is that?" she asks.
"Sword," he grunts back.
"Give it to me." she demands icily.
"It's not yorn, missus, it's mine, I reckon I found it."
With a bang and a flash of red light from Bellatrix's wand, he is stunned. A roar of anger arouses from Greyback and his other people.
One of them draws his wand, "What d'you think you're playing at, woman?"
"Stupefy!" Bellatrix screams. "Stupefy!"
All of them fall to the floor, except for Greyback, who has been forced into a kneeling position, his arms outstretched. Bellatrix bears down upon the werewolf, her face waxen, with the golden sword gripped tightly in her hand.
"Where did you get this sword?" she whispers to the werewolf, pulling his wand from his grip.
"How dare you?" he snarls, slaver dripping from his jaws. He bares his fangs at her, "Release me, woman!"
"Where did you find this sword?" she repeats, shoving it in his face. "Snape sent it to my vault in Gringotts!"
"It was in their tent," rasps Greyback. "Release me, I say!"
She waves her wand, and the werewolf springs to his feet. Too wary to approach Bellatrix, he prowls behind an armchair.
"Draco, move this scum outside," Bellatrix addresses me, looking at the unconscious men. "If you haven't got the guts to finish them, then leave them in the courtyard for me."
"Don't you dare speak to Draco like-" Narcissa yells, but Bellatrix cuts her off with a scream.
"Be quiet! The situation is graver than you can possibly imagine, Cissy! We have a very serious problem!"
I guess I should take the unconscious people outside then…. I start grabbing them and dragging them into the courtyard. It's nice to get out of the house to get some fresh air away from all the other Death Eaters, especially that horrible, terrifying, disgusting werewolf!
I look down at the men I've brought out here, laying on the grass, stunned. I sigh and walk back inside. I wonder what's happening now…. Maybe I don't want to know.
"ANSWER ME! CRUCIO!" Bellatrix is screaming. Hermione screams in pain and agony, contorting on the floor. I wince at the sight. Even though I strongly dislike Granger, seeing this is actually greatly disturbing. I crouch underneath the table and cover my ears, trying hard not to pay attention.
I hear bits of what Bellatrix and Hermione are saying, but overall, I can't really understand. I'm just trying to keep to myself. Then I hear my father's voice. I take my hands off my ears and jerk my head up.
"Draco, fetch the goblin, he can tell us whether the sword is real or not!"
My heart pounding in my chest, I back out from under the table and quickly walk down the steps to the cellar. I never glanced at anyone while walking by. I did not want to see Bellatrix or Granger.
"Stand back. Line up against the back wall. Don't try anything, or I'll kill you!" My voice comes out very shaky, and the last words feel very dry. I know I wouldn't actually do it. I need to be - or at least appear to be - confident. I march inside the darkness of the cellar. Good, the prisoners are following my orders! I grab Griphook the goblin and back out, shutting the door behind me.
I bring the goblin over to Bellatrix but don't make eye-contact with her. I'm going to go sit under the table again.
I'm sitting here wondering when this traumatic experience is going to be over, then I hear my father's voice again.
"What was that?" shouts Lucius. "Did you hear that? What was that noise in the cellar? Draco - no, call Wormtail! Make him go and check!"
I sigh in relief. It's not me this time. I crawl out a little from under the table, anyway, alert for anything that might happen next.
"What is it, Wormtail?" Lucius calls. I can't really hear the response he gets, but Lucius doesn't seem to have a bad reaction, so I guess it's okay.
Bellatrix asks Griphook about the sword, "Is it the true sword?"
"No," says Griphook. "It is a fake."
"Are you sure?" pants Bellatrix. "Quite sure?"
"Yes," says the goblin.
"Good," she says, and with a flick of her wand, she slashes a deep cut into the goblin's face. He drops to her feet with a yell, and she kicks him aside. "And now," she says, bursting with triumph, "we call the Dark Lord!"
She pushes back her sleeve and touches her Dark Mark. I gulp. I don't like how this might turn out….
I stand up and look around, then I grasp the table and take a couple of deep breaths. Please don't kill me or my parents.
"And I think," Bellatrix's voice rings out, "we can dispose of the Mudblood. Greyback, take her if you want her."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Weasley's voice screams, and I hear a patter of footsteps storming into the room. "Expelliarmus!" he roars.
I wheel around to face the escaped prisoners.
"Stupify!" Potter yells, and Lucius collapses onto the hearth.
No! I throw out a spell from my wand, but Potter rolls behind a sofa to avoid it.
"STOP OR SHE DIES!" I hear Bellatrix scream. Startled, I spin around. Bellatrix is supporting an unconscious Hermione, and she's holding a knife to her throat.
"Drop your wands," she whispers to Harry and Ron. "Drop them, or we'll see exactly how filthy her blood is!"
Ron and Harry do not drop the wands they're holding but only stand straighter and more rigid than before.
"I said drop them!" Bellatrix screeches, pressing the blade into Hermione's throat, causing small beads of blood to appear.
"All right!" Potter shouts and drops the wand. Ron does the same, and they both raise their hands.
"Good!" Bellatrix leers. "Draco, pick them up!" I head over to pick them up. "The Dark Lord is coming, Harry Potter! Your death approaches!" I hurry back to her with the wands. "Now, Cissy, I think we ought to tie these little heroes up again, while Greyback takes care of Miss Mudblood. I am sure the Dark Lord will not begrudge you the girl, Greyback, after what you have done tonight."
I now hear a peculiar grinding noise from above. I look up to see the crystal chandelier tremble. Then with a creak and an ominous jingling, it begins to fall. I hear my aunt scream. My own eyes widen in terror as I jump back. Glittering shards of crystal fly in all directions, and my face gets cut by many of them. Doubling over, I cover my bloody face.
Before I realize what's happening, Potter is on me, wrestling the three wands from my grip. He points them at Greyback and yells, "Stupefy!" The werewolf is lifted off his feet by the triple spell, flies up to the ceiling, and then smashes to the ground with a crack.
My mother comes to drag me out of the way. I'm upset that Potter took the wands - one of them is mine! But I also got a kick out of what he did to Greyback - Take that, you horrible werewolf!
"Dobby!" Narcissa screams in shock. "You! You dropped the chandelier-?"
The tiny elf trots into the room, his shaking finger pointing at my mother. "You must not hurt Harry Potter," he squeaks.
"Kill him, Cissy!" shrieks Bellatrix, but there's another loud crack, and Narcissa's wand flies into the air and lands on the other side of the room.
"You dirty little monkey!" bawls Bellatrix. "How dare you take a witch's wand, how dare you defy your masters?"
"Dobby has no master!" squeals the elf. "Dobby is a free elf, and Dobby has come to save Harry Potter and his friends!"
"Ron, catch-" Potter throws a wand to his friend, who was holding up Hermione "-and GO!" He hoists Griphook, who was still clinging to the sword, over one shoulder, and seizes Dobby's hand. He spins on the spot, Disapparating.
Bellatrix throws her knife at the place where Potter, Weasley, Granger, the goblin, and the elf are disappearing, and then, they vanish completely from sight, the knife along with them.
There's nothing I can do now but await Voldemort's punishment.
I can hear footsteps creeping closer. The Dark Lord has arrived. He's too late to kill Harry Potter. He'll be enraged.
Bellatrix immediately falls to his feet, "My Lord, I am deeply sorry for our failure. We really did have Potter, but he escaped just now - I'm so sorry we lost him-"
"You interrupted a very important task! I warned you! I told you not to call me unless you had Potter! Now you don't have him! You've failed and will now be punished - some of you more severely than others." He looks at Lucius.
My heart catches in my throat. No!
Voldemort looks at me with the same maliciousness he did when he asked me to torture Rowle - only this time, it's worse.
"Draco," Voldemort says smoothly. My heart beats rapidly. "You're going to be the one to teach Lucius a lesson. You're going to use the Cruciatus curse on him! Do what you did to Rowle! Do it to your father!" His tongue flickers in and out.
Narcissa makes sort of a muffled screaming sound. This must be so hard for her to watch. My heart feels heavy. I can't….
"Draco…" my father whispers. "Do what he wants. I don't want you to get hurt…."
I'm staring at the floor, trying to decide what to do.
"No!" I finally say. "I can't! I won't! I won't harm my father!"
"Draco-" Lucius says, "please." He's so desperate to protect me, but I just can't do it - I care about him, too. I know I'll have consequences for this, but I don't care at the moment.
"Very well," says Voldemort. "I'll deal with Draco later, but for now, I'll just have to give you your punishment instead, Lucius."
I sink to the floor. Of course he was just going to torture him, anyway. And I can't do anything about it - at least I don't have my father's blood on my hands-
"Crucio!" Voldemort shouts. I hear my father screaming in pain. I can't watch. I can't bear the pain of my father in pain. This is too much. Tears roll down my face, and I sink lower into the floor. There's nothing I can do…. I lay here listening to the sound of Mother's crying.
After Lucius has been screaming for a while, I can't handle it anymore. I lift myself up slightly from where I'm laying on the floor, not daring to look at my father - I don't want to see what Voldemort's done to him - "Stop!" I scream. This gets Voldemort's attention.
"Oh?" he looks at me. "Looks like Draco doesn't want you to be tortured anymore, Lucius. I guess I should stop then." He lowers his wand.
I hold my breath. Something's not right about this….
"But of course… that'll come with a price. I'll have to torture Draco now."
"Please-" Lucius begs. "Don't touch my son…!" He gasps for breath.
Laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling, I brace myself for what might come. My vision is starting to get blurry - I realize I haven't had anything to drink today. I feel my eyelids drooping, but as I close my eyes, I feel a sharp pain in my side - it hurts! So! Much! I think I'm screaming, but I can't hear myself.
Shaking violently, the feeling of blood flowing from me.
The pain - it's excruciating.
My hands are flailing.
I can't see anything, but I think I hear my mother crying and screaming. My father, too.
The cold floor.
Darkness.
"Draco? Draco?"
Mother.
I open my eyes.
My mother wraps her arms around me. I'm laying on my bed, blood staining the sheets. Bandaging is wrapped around me to stop the bleeding.
"I need water," I croak.
Narcissa nods and leaves the room, coming back later with a cup of water.
I can't quite sit up right - when I move, pain jabs at me - so I drink half laying down, and I spill most of the water on the sheets, but what I do manage to drink feels amazing.
Narcissa goes to get more, and I lay back down on my bed.
Now that I've recovered from my punishment - I still have scars, but those are concealed by my clothing - I've gone back to Hogwarts.
I have to find Potter. If I can find him - well - I guess I can bring him to the Dark Lord…. Will that restore my family's honor? I need to get my wand back, too! Mother has given me hers to use, but it's just not the same - something about it doesn't feel right…. I need my own wand. Without it, I feel like I've lost a part of myself.
I've gotten Crabbe and Goyle to help me search for Potter. I'll need their strength to back me up. Potter probably has Weasley and Granger, and I can't take on three people by myself - although Crabbe and Goyle... well, they're pretty stupid and aren't all that reliable, but they can at least be useful sometimes.
I see Potter and his friends slip into the Room of Requirement - the room where I fixed the Vanishing Cabinet last year. We're hiding under a Dissillusion Charm so that we aren't seen, then I slowly creep closer to the wall where the entrance should appear.
"What're you doing?" Crabbe asks.
I ignore him and concentrate. I need to find Harry Potter and his friends. Take me to them. I need Harry Potter - show me the Room of Hidden Things. The door appears in the wall. I open it and step into the Room of Requirement, Crabbe and Goyle following behind. Piles of junk - books, trunks, robes, furniture, and many other objects are stacked in rows towering high into the air. I wander around in search of Potter - catching sight of the Vanishing Cabinet - memories fill my head. The Death Eaters came into the school. Fenrir Greyback was here… and Dumbledore… he wanted to help me - to protect me and my parents, and then he was killed - I couldn't do anything more. I shake my head. I can't think about that. I have to focus on right now. Where is - there!
Potter is stretching out his hand, reaching for something. "Hold it, Potter." I stretch out my mother's wand. Potter freezes and turns around. "That's my wand you're holding, Potter."
"Not anymore," says Potter. "Winners keepers, Malfoy. Who's lent you theirs?"
"My mother."
Potter laughs - I have no idea what's so funny to him-
"So how come you three aren't with Voldemort?" he asks.
"We're gonna be rewarded," Crabbe speaks up. "We 'ung back, Potter. We decided not to go. Decided to bring you to 'im."
"Good plan," says Potter sarcastically. He slowly edges backwards. "So how did you get in here?"
"I virtually lived in the Room of Hidden Things all last year," I explain. "I know how to get in."
"We was hiding in the corridor outside," grunts Goyle. "We can do Diss-lusion Charms now! And then, you turned up right in front of us and said you was looking for a die-dum! What's a die-dum?"
I'm mentally slapping myself.
"Harry?" I hear Weasley's voice echo. "Are you talking to someone?"
Crabbe suddenly points his wand at the mountain of old objects and shouts, "Descendo!"
The mountain shakes, and the top third of it crumbles down to the other side.
"Ron!" Potter yells, and I hear a scream that sounds like Granger. Potter points my wand at the unstable mountain and yells, "Finite!" and it steadies once more.
Crabble lurches to repeat his spell, but I grab his arm, "No! If you wreck the room you might bury this diadem thing!" I hope he listens!
"What's that matter?" he says, and I inwardly groan. He tugs himself free of my grasp, "It's Potter the Dark Lord wants, who cares about a die-dum?"
"Potter came in here to get it." Could he be any more stupid? I'm trying to disguise my impatience, but it may be showing. "So that must mean-"
"'Must mean'?" Crabbe cuts in angrily. "Who cares what you think? I don't take your orders no more, Draco. You an' your dad are finished."
"Harry?" shouts Weasley again, from the other side of the wall of junk. "What's going on?"
"Harry?" mimics Crabbe. "What's going-" Potter lunges for the tiara. "No, Potter! Crucio!" His curse misses Potter and hits the stone bust the tiara is on. The stone flies into the air, falling onto a pile of objects, the tiara falling off into the pile and disappearing.
"STOP!" I yell at Crabbe. I can't believe this is happening! After all these years of ordering these two around - I never thought either of them would turn on me - and this? This is just plain reckless! Crabbe is being stupid! "The Dark Lord want him alive-"
"So? I'm not killing him, am I?" yells Crabbe, throwing off my arm. "But if I can, I will, the Dark Lord wants him dead anyway, what's the diff-?" Granger runs behind Potter and shoots a Stunning Spell straight toward Crabbe's head. I pull him out of the way just in time, so he doesn't get hit.
"It's that Mudblood! Avada Kedavra!" Crabbe shouts, and Granger dives to the side. Maybe I should've let him take that Stunning Spell….
Crabbe dodges a spell from Potter and knocks my wand out of my hand, and it rolls out of sight beneath broken furniture and some boxes. Really?
Crabbe and Goyle are both aiming at Potter now. "Don't kill him! DON'T KILL HIM!" I yell. They hesitate for a split second. They actually - kind of - listened.
"Expelliarmus!" Potter is able to yell, and Goyle's wand flies out of his hand and disappears into the pile of objects - just like my mother's.
Granger shoots a Stunning Spell at me - I jump out of the way. Why would she aim for me? I don't have a wand anymore, and the entire time I've just been trying to control these stupid lunks!
Crabbe screams, "Avada Kedavra!" again, and Weasley avoids it. I can't control them or the situation, so I hide behind a wardrobe to stay out of harm's way. I see Goyle get stunned by Granger's spell.
"It's somewhere here!" Potter yells. "Look for it while I go and help R-"
"HARRY!" Granger screams, and I hear a roaring, billowing noise.
What's happening? What has Crabbe done now?
"Like it hot, scum?" roars Crabbe as he runs. Flames of abnormal size are pursuing him and Weasley and are now spreading more and more through the room, burning up the piles of objects.
"Aguamenti!" Potter bawls, but the water just evaporates a second later. "RUN!"
I race over to Goyle, who's stunned on the floor. He won't be able to save himself, so I grab him and start dragging him along. Crabbe runs ahead of everyone, now looking terrified.
I can't see anything through the building flames - they look like monsters, and they're coming toward us. Crabbe has disappeared out of sight. I need to get myself and Goyle to safety now. How? I just keep running - Goyle's weight is bearing down on me - I have to keep going. I see a stack of desks. This is probably the only hope we have of getting out of this alive - if it's even possible. I start climbing, still clinging to Goyle on my back. I finally reach the top, exhausted, but I can't rest - not when there are monstrous flames rearing up the edges of the platform.
I cling onto Goyle's limp body, trying to keep him from falling into the flames. I scream in terror. This is the end. I'm never going back to my parents - they'll be very upset.
I see something flying through the air - Potter! He's coming this way! Will he save us? He dives toward us, so I reach out my arm, but when Potter grasps it, my sweaty hand slips out of his grip, and Goyle is too heavy for Potter to pull us both up at the same time. I grasp tighter onto Goyle. I'm not letting him fall into the fire.
"IF WE DIE FOR THEM, I'LL KILL YOU, HARRY!" I hear Weasley. A great flaming monster bears down upon us, but luckily Weasley and Granger drag Goyle from me and get him onto their broom, and I climb onto Potter's.
I cling tightly to Potter, "The door, get to the door, the door!" Potter speeds up behind Weasley and Granger with Goyle. Then he suddenly swerves around and dives. "What are you doing, what are you doing, the door's that way!"
Potter lunges for something falling into the flames - it's the tiara. He catches it and soars into the air in the direction of the door - escaping a flame lunging toward us. I scream and tighten my grip on Potter.
Potter flies through an open space in the wall, and we collide with the wall in the corridor. I fall off the broom, facedown on the floor, gasping, coughing, and retching.
Yes! Safety and clean air! I still continue to cough. There was so much smoke, and my eyes are watering.
Of course I had to be saved by the enemy, Potter. I feel like I've lost my dignity, but hey… at least I'm not burned to death….
I look over and see Potter, Weasley, and Granger - all in a similar state as me. Then there's Goyle, who looks alright, but is still unconscious. I realize with a sinking heart that Crabbe is gone.
"C-Crabbe," I choke out once I stop coughing. "C-Crabbe..."
"He's dead," says Weasley harshly.
I know, but why am I so sad? Crabbe was never a close friend - more like a bodyguard, and in the end, he betrayed me - told me he wouldn't listen to me. He put us all - including himself - in danger! He caused this to happen! It's his fault he's dead! But I'm still sad - I didn't want him to die - especially not like that. Why didn't he listen to me? Slight rage bubbles inside me. If he had listened - this wouldn't have happened - he'd still be here….
Potter, Weasley, and Granger have been talking, but I'm not listening to what they're saying - it's probably not important anyway - until they mention Crabbe and that the spell he used was Fiendfyre - something he learned how to use from the Carrows but never knew how to control.
"If he hadn't tried to kill us all, I'd be quite sorry he was dead," says Weasley.
I don't pay attention to anything else anyone says, and they leave quickly when the noises of the raging war grow louder. Me and Goyle are left on our own. I'm going to wait for Goyle to regain consciousness - I can't leave him alone like this to die like Crabbe - then I'll set out to find my parents. There's no hope for us now, except for Harry Potter to beat Voldemort - he has to - I don't want Voldemort to win!
I run through the raging battle, trying not to be seen - I could be attacked by either side - the defending side knows I'm a Death Eater, and the Death Eaters think I'm weak and worthless. I don't have a wand, either, so I'm defenseless if I were to be attacked, which adds to the danger I'm in. I have to find my parents - fast. I just hope they're okay….
A Death Eater appears to be coming toward me, with his wand out - I've been spotted! "I'm Draco Malfoy, I'm Draco, I'm on your side!" I can't do anything other than beg. He still won't back down. I'm about to be killed-
All of a sudden, the Death Eater is stunned. Yes! I've been saved! But - by who? I look around and don't see anyone. Hmmm….
Something flashes through the air and hits me in the face. Ow! I fall back on top of the stunned Death Eater. What was that? I continue looking around but still don't see anyone. I can taste the blood on my lips. What just happened?
"And that's the second time we've saved your life tonight, you two-faced-" Is that Weasley?
After my narrow - and quite mysterious - escape, I try to be even more cautious. My stomach feels heavy. I can't find my parents -where could they possibly be? Are they… still alive? I swallow hard. They have to be - I have to find them-!
"Draco!" I hear a voice call through the thick of the battle. Could it be-?
"Draco!"
"Draco!"
Mother! Father! Where are their voices coming from? I look around.
"DRACO!" Closer now. I run toward their voices. My parents come into view. I found them! They look just as happy to see me as I am to see them as I run up and throw my arms around them.
"Draco-" Narcissa cries as she and Lucius wrap their arms around me. As we all embrace each other in happiness and relief - all other fears currently melted away - tears fill my eyes. We're going to make it - together.
"You know, we're still in the middle of a war," Lucius points out. "We should move out of the way. Let's find an empty room where, hopefully, we can't be found and hide until the end of the war."
"Yes, you're right. We need to be safe." Narcissa agrees.
We find an empty classroom - unoccupied by any Death Eaters or defenders. Let's hope no one else comes in here.
Crouching under a table, we remain silent for a long time, listening to shouting, screaming, and explosions from outside. I hope it all ends soon. I want things to go back to normal - or at least as normal as they possibly can. I want to finally feel free again - and not be treated like nothing more than just some tool to carry out Voldemort's orders.
Potter, you have to win. I know there's a brain in there, somewhere. I mentally roll my eyes. Stupid Potter. Seriously though, get rid of Voldemort for good!
I listen to the surrounding sounds and realize the noise has died down. What's happening? Is it ending?
After minutes of silence, noise breaks out again - loud cheering. Which side is it coming from? I look at my parents questioningly. They nod and start to get up. I follow them, my heart pounding in my chest. I can't live in a world where Voldemort is in charge!
We get to the Great Hall and see lots of Hogwarts students and professors all celebrating a victory. This must mean - Peeves zooms by singing some kind of Harry Potter victory song.
We survived! Voldemort's gone! I collapse into a chair at a table. My parents do the same on both sides of me. I lay my head down on the table. Lucius wraps his arm around me and Narcissa, and Narcissa caresses my back.
Relief is rapidly flooding through me, but I can't help but think - what next? Will the Ministry punish my family? Will I ever fit back into Wizarding Society? What should I do now? I guess I'll just have to start picking up the pieces.